An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latinancora, which itself comes from the Greek ἄγκυρα (ankura).<ref>anchor, Oxford Dictionaries</ref><ref>ἄγκυρα, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, on Perseus</ref>

Anchors can either be temporary or permanent. Permanent anchors are used in the creation of a mooring, and are rarely moved; a specialist service is normally needed to move or maintain them. Vessels carry one or more temporary anchors, which may be of different designs and weights.

A sea anchor is a drogue, not in contact with the seabed, used to control a drifting vessel.